by Atanu Roy
“I'm Irrfan, just Irrfan. I've taken out Khan from my name. I don't want to be known by my religion, surname or lineage.” – Irrfan
It's untimely, it's hurting me, still, his words resonate within me, “The day I become conventional, something inside me will die.” And today, I'll not make this obituary conventional for sure. Dedicating my pure love and respect for the magician called Irrfan, I will not allow something inside me to die.
Irrfan somehow gave birth to a parallel Bollywood, which started growing with him. Like in every field, cinema too has an invisible guard wall. However, when you start running through it, often you get hurt, and on the rarest of occasions, you end up victorious. Irrfan represented that rarest species who end up with a smile and with no scars on their body of work. One wonders how a small-town boy with such an infectious smile could achieve so much! The only answer is – ‘being able to connect'. Irrfan once said, “I can't think of a more pathetic situation than to do a film and not connect to it.” For every true artist, the word ‘connect' matters. Irrespective of the characters they enact, it is the primary role of the artists. Irrfan connected well. He connected well with the narrative, with the audience, and with the void that, I think, was there within him. As a reflex of our minds, we generally overlook one's behavioural evolution until the ultimate moment arrives, to write an obituary. While writing, we start pondering and it pains our soul. Some people leave a long-lasting impression, while others fail to do so. Irrfan, the name, leaves something in our hearts that we can't express in words. Millions of his admirers mourn his demise. He carried the legacy of film acting on his able shoulders. And the legacy he has left for generations to follow, remains unparalleled. And in this, an artist like Irrfan champions, because his life and works have set a trend that will now be his legacy. Today is not the time to write thousands of words on characters he had portrayed. It is neither the time to lament, saying he left so soon. Instead, let us wonder how simple you need to be to live forever in the hearts of millions of your fans. Irrfan redefines simplicity, that amply reflected in his work. Serious in his craft, he symbolizes passion through timing. As an actor, he transcended all limits and mesmerized the world with his skill. And these have truly made him irreplaceable, inimitable.
He once said, “Wanting fame is a disease and, one day, I will want to be free from this disease, from this desire. Where fame doesn't matter.” Truly, he never wanted fame. Actually, he proved that fame doesn't matter. Fame is nothing but a relative term. He always wanted to entertain people with some substance and he kept doing that.
Irrfan played different roles in Tigmanshu Dhulia's life as a friend and sometimes as a brother. Tigmanshu said, “Irrfan's passing is a huge loss for the entire film fraternity, but I have lost a dear friend today. We were destined to be friends. I was 19 when I first met him at the National School of Drama, where I was a few years junior to him. Since then, Irrfan has played different roles in my life — sometimes he was a pal, other times, an elder brother. There were times when he would push me to work harder, like a mentor.”
Irrfan carried within himself a mentor. Bengali actor Sudiptaa Chakraborty said, “You have been a distant teacher Mr Irrfan Khan. I've been your Ekalavya. I can't believe you lost the fight finally. We'll remember your fight, sir. We'll remember you in every possible way we can.” That is the way he connected. Like Sudiptaa, innumerable Ekalavyas will remember the master in every possible way.
Vishal Bhardwaj, who was one of the frequent collaborators that had shaped Irrfan's career in a different way, said, “I feared that he would be gone much before his time but didn't expect that it will be so devastating and ravaging to me personally. It feels as if I am torn into two parts. A part of me has died with him”.
Irrfan was the very face of romanticism, he did not need to meet the millions of hearts he had stolen. His co-star of ‘The Lunchbox', Nimrat Kaur mentions, “I actually got to spend time with him truly when we went to Cannes Film Festival (2013). I remember when the film had premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and everything was so overwhelming, it was looking like the beginning of something very big, I got a bit overwhelmed and I asked him, How do you handle so much adulation? I don't know how to handle what's coming right now. He laughed I remember and said, just enjoy the good times and make the most of them because the bad times are what are always around. He told me to never be shy of celebrating.
Actor-director Aparna Sen said, “Irrfan Khan…gone. The world has lost one of the best actors it had ever produced. Nothing more to say. Goodbye Irrfan. May you be at peace wherever you are now. It's bound to be a better place than this violent, virus-ridden planet of ours! My deepest condolences to his family.” Undoubtedly, no one can deny to second Smt Sen. After exploring every possible genre of World Cinema, one can definitely say that the world will miss one of his greatest craftsmen in the time to come.
An ardent admirer like many, director Ranjan Ghosh tried to relive his works that affected his thinking. As promised, I'll not write anything on the characters he portrayed, I will show you Irrfan's impactful journey through Ghosh's eyes. He says, “My first tryst with Irrfan Khan was in Vishal Bharadwaj's ‘Maqbool'. The fact that ‘Macbeth' was being turned into a film featuring stalwarts like Pankaj Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, and Om Puri had spiked my interest. Of course, there was Tabu as well. I didn't know Irrfan Khan then, but had found his smouldering and unconventional look quite intriguing. After watching the film, I was in tears. How could someone completely own the character of Macbeth with all its complexities so effortlessly? I had become his life-long admirer. His turn in Mira Nair's brilliant ‘The Namesake' reminded me of my father (who had passed away long ago). My association with him was cemented for life. If his comic act in ‘Life in a Metro' would leave me warm, his expectant smile while opening ‘The Lunchbox' would make me eager to read the letter inside. If his funny sparks in ‘Piku' would leave me in splits, his glorious strides in ‘Paan Singh Tomar' would have me staring at the big screen, awestruck. Such was his range, such was his talent. He never ‘acted', he simply ‘behaved'. I thoroughly enjoyed his international films as well, especially Ang Lee's ‘Life of Pi'. He went down like a true warrior in life. It is only ironical and befitting that the first film that would assure him a permanent berth in filmdom would also be titled ‘The Warrior'. He was Cinema's blue-eyed boy indeed.”
It is indeed a fact that that smouldering and unconventional looking Maqbool aka Macbeth was one of the best portrayals of the Bard's creation. Shakespeare would surely have been very happy watching him portray Miyaan Maqbool so immaculately.
Irrfan was a delicate individual who was also advanced in his thoughts. He used to love discourse and this stopped him from turning judgmental or cynical about anything. He succeeded in embracing everyone, irrespective of barriers and distances. An artist lives forever when his death turns into a personal loss breaking all border lines.
Actor Paoli Dam said, “Irrfan Khan is the name that carried mainstream cinema at a sky-high level. Without six-pack abs, hanky panky and any stereotypical heroic elements, he reached such a height. It's indeed a very sad day for cinema. A legend like Irrfan Khan can't die. They live on forever. I want to mention a film, ‘Haider'. In that film, Irrfan plays a character with a mere 20 minutes of screen presence, whereas others have the complete film. However, when you think of that film you can't resist talking about Irrfan. It's a loss that can't be resolved. I personally admire two people, Smita Patil and Irrfan Khan. My destiny disallowed my wish to be fulfilled. The subtlety of his actions will remain in my heart forever.” Paoli mentions an important point, that of the screen time of an actor. For a true artist, it doesn't matter how long you are there on screen, all that matters is, how much impact you are creating.
The co-star of his only Bengali film, ‘Doob', Nusrat Imrose Tisha from Bangladesh said, “An artist extraordinaire who knew how to remain extremely down to earth, a true gem of world cinema who inspired a generation of actors, a unique actor who could make audiences relate to a wide variety of human conditions! Irrfan Khan, your legacy will continue while you rest in peace!”
The thing that matters in an artist's life is his philosophy. The philosophy one possesses in his life will determine how he will be remembered. Irrfan's philosophy about life was very simple, “People like to see my work, not face”. He followed this phrase throughout his life, and he challenged the vagaries of the tide through his work.
Irrfan said, “I'm not a very talkative man, and people are threatened by silence. If you are sitting in a group and you are not saying anything, people start getting insecure. They start thinking, he is a snob. Or he is thinking something negative about me. Silence brings out your devils.” Precisely, silence threatens. The artist Irrfan expressed so much with his silence on screen. Never a snob, he created a different kind of artistry that complements his silence.
Dear Irrfan, you will be happy to know that you will be remembered as a great human being. Your admirers who used to smile with you and cry with you for years now are reliving those memories and are determined not to let you go, ever. You will be with them, they want to love you forever and ever and ever.
I know you will read this someday from the eternal backstage. Have you noticed that I have addressed you as Irrfan, just Irrfan? That I have erased the ‘Khan' from your name? Well, I don't want to remember you by your religion, surname or ancestral lineage, Irrfan. For me, you are an actor. The purest one. Stay safe, Master. Keep performing up there, keep wearing that smile of yours.
